TUMAKURU: It was perhaps the most horrifying eight hours for two women who had to lock themselves in the bathroom after a leopard entered their house in Jayanagar area of Tumakuru on Saturday morning. The women and the leopard were rescued after almost an 11-hour joint operation by the Forest, Fire and Police department personnel.
A few morning walkers sighted the leopard in the vicinity and informed the police and the forest department. Some Forest department personnel were sent to the spot to rescue the animal. But, in the melee, the scared leopard pounced on forest watcher Govindaraju, pawing him on his back, and escaped towards the residential area.
Around 8 am, the leopard clawed on the door of one Ranganath. He was at home with his wife Vanajakshi and daughter-in-law Vinutha while his son and three-year-old grand-daughter had gone out. On hearing the sound, Ranganath and Vinutha opened the door and found the leopard at the door. Shocked, Ranganath ran out while Vinutha threw her sweater at the leopard and made a dash to the bathroom where Vanajakshi was, and both locked themselves inside.
Two women had a harrowing time after a leopard entered their house in Jayanagar area of Tumakuru on Saturday.
As news spread, crowds started gathering in front of the house owner Ranganath. The women, however, hollered from the bathroom that they were safe inside. Hours of operation to get the animal outside did not yield any result as the leopard tucked itself in different parts of the house including the kitchen loft. Around 4pm, on the instructions of Deputy Commissioner K P Mohanraj, the fire force crew demolished a part of the bathroom wall and rescued the women.
Around 6pm, a Rapid Action Force, led by veterinarians Dr Murali from Hassan and Dr Sujay from Bannerghatta National Park were called in. They shot two doses of tranquiliser at the animal and only later could it be captured.
Deputy Conservator of Forests Ramalinge Gowda told The New Indian Express that the big cat will be shifted to the Male Mahadeshwara Hills in Chamarajanagar district after administering first aid. “The population of leopards has increased whereas the forest cover has decreased in Tumakuru. That’s why incidents of man-animal conflict are on the rise”, he said. MLA Dr Rafeek Ahmed, DC K P Mohanraj, SP Divya V Gopinath, Additional SP Shobharani and others camped for over four hours during the afternoon to supervise the operation.
It may be recalled that in 2009, a leopard had strayed into the Siddhartha Engineering College campus, causing a scare.